Alone in the Park - it's the Prem 2020-21 thread

You dont have to sweep the board at once

And uefa gave them a pass on ffp iirc

It's definitely going to be much harder to challenge their dominance. We've avoided a future in which the PL is dominated forevermore by six clubs and more or less guaranteed one where it's dominated by two, and the PL is still arguably the least predictable of the major European leagues.

Bayern have had a mediocre season and have all but guaranteed their ninth consecutive title, PSG have had a terrible one and are still favourites to win Ligue 1. Only once since 1990 has any team other than Inter, Juve or Milan won Serie A, etc. The misty-eyed homilies from politicians and UEFA about the beauty of football being that anyone can win aren't going to lead to anything likely to change that.

They didn't give them a pass, Man City took it to arbritration and won the case, I'm sure that went down well at UEFA.

idnrc so, but uefa not having any power/role over city as demonstrated still makes my point stand that they won as much as they couldve, i think

Jol otm btw

Have to wait to see the dust settle but right now City looking the biggest winners here - Especially if they can get the press to paint this in a certain way, though thats just a bonus)

Real the biggest losers.

Whats jol said, ive switched browsers and the search is frankly useless

Just a general quote about the football business being a lot more amateurish than it might appear to the outsider.

obviously on a much smaller scale it reminds of after the ITV digital crash, and loads of tinpot clubs suddenly with an ITV digital sized hole in their revenue (probably 100% British owned clubs I should add) conspired to make a Prem 2 based on some woolly nice new stadium/*big* club criteria and strand the likes of Scunthorpe in league 1 forever. That didn't really get past the flying the kite and see what happens stage iirc

And the WaPo is the winner. The article argues that those against the Super League are evil nationalist populists who are against both democracy and liberal capitalist globalism. Well done, lads. This was a belter! https://t.co/PvLaHDnc82 pic.twitter.com/V41GRIrG6H

— Michael S (@ScanlanWithAnA) April 20, 2021

it seems the Washington Post have come up with the most American worst possible fucking take on this!

Worst takes in descending order:

3) those against super league are nationalist reactionaries, see Washpost there

2) liberals undermining competitive spirit w participation trophies etc causing big clubs to have sense of entitlement to success- can't remember, think it was some radio phone-in bullshit

<quite a gap to the tete de la course>

1) Super league is an insult to the memory of the Duke of Edinburgh, says Ian Holloway

wait, ascending order

lol Holloway plumbing new depths of zaniness

Serie A club Inter Milan confirm they have withdrawn from the European Super League

— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) April 21, 2021

Unlock career mode points to play as ESL teams

Asked whether the project could still happen after the exits, Agnelli told Reuters: “To be frank and honest no, evidently that is not the case.”

“I remain convinced of the beauty of that project,” he said, stating it would have created the best competition in the world. “But admittedly … I mean, I don’t think that that project is now still up and running.”

“I’m not going to say how many clubs contacted me in just 24 hours asking if they could join,” he said, declining to name them. “Maybe they lied, but I was contacted by a number of teams asking what they could do to join.”

“I have had speculation to that extent that if six teams would have broken away and would have threatened the EPL, politics would have seen that as an attack to Brexit and their political scheme,” he said.

“If you tell me other methods for putting together such projects … if you were to ask the authorisation of others, I don’t think you would have carried out a project like this. The relations are there, I have seen relations changing in time, some people I am quite sure that people will be open and talk to each other. I don’t think our industry is a particularly sincere, trustworthy or reliable one in general.”

pic.twitter.com/RRyVsEeXlU

— Ireland Simpsons Fans (@iresimpsonsfans) April 21, 2021

Amazing would many sanctimonious clowns have forgotten the formation of the premiership and the champs league and sky and sudden grown consciences

I think Barcelona are still in there but, perfectly, this is coming down to the two scummiest football teams in Europe: Juventus and Real Madrid.

It's a shame that Normal Football Guy seems to have sacked off twitter

if barca don't withdraw then they can wait for the esl to be formally declared dead and therefore not have to pay a withdrawal penalty no?

A league with just Real and Barca in it playing 30+ times a season would be... fine by most of their fans, and certainly all the media and TV I'd guess?

The Scottish dream

The only football rivalries worth mentioning are those that go back to the war of the spanish succession imo

Kirkwall Ba game the only one that really matters, Uppies vs Doonies the eternal rivalry
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kirkwall_Ba_game

Don't know if the prem are going to take any punitive action on this, but a meaningful points penalty that would move man c off the top of the league would also probably see arsenal get relegated

The Scottish dream

It most certainly isn't.

Don't know if the prem are going to take any punitive action on this, but a meaningful points penalty that would move man c off the top of the league would also probably see arsenal get relegated

― building a hole (NickB), Wednesday, 21 April 2021 16:24 (one hour ago) bookmarkflaglink

I’d lol

Spurs deservedly behind. Horrific, listless performance.

At home, against a team with nothing much to play for, and they can neither execute, nor defend, a corner competently.

No, no, theyre about to be 'unleashed'

These fucking heroes

Great performance by Southampton to be winning against one of Europe's elite teams, this must be like a cup final to their players.

it really is tough going when you are an elite club surrounded by jealous riff-raff who all raise their game against you, ask Bradford City!

Nice finish from Bale from Spurs’ first real attack.

That first hour as bleak as anything since my own personal low of udinese

Lo celso and ndombele look like a pair of lads newly introduced to this league

Jose out

Yep.

Second half has only been a little better but, again, lucky to be playing a side liable to concede twice from two chances.

Ah, it’s going to be ruled out.

If Vinicius can’t get on the pitch under these circumstances, I can’t imagine when he will.

Lack of confidence prevents us doing more than two moves a game, from which we score twice give or take a lucas standing in the way

Kind of thing youd take confidence from if you werent as a group totally invested in your own hard life

Has to be a pen.

Who’ll have the honour of missing it?

Never in doubt.

So much better after the hour, i wondee what mourinho stopped saying to them

well that FP-worthy sangfroid didn't last long at least

our weekly ninety minutes' hate

goals in the 30th, 60th and 90th. one for the real headz

a true run lola run of a football match

👑👑👑👑👑👑👑 https://t.co/nOLXuLiW2r

— joolsd (@joolsd) April 21, 2021